Steel building construction.



JN0. 761,297. j PATBNTED 'MAY 31.1904.

i H. G. HODGKINS. l

, STEEL BUILDING CONSTRUCTION.

- APPLIUATION FILED JULY 16. 1903,.

miieldsa- Intentar.-

' 72:3 attorneys UNITED STATES Patented may 31, 19o/.`

HOWARD G. -HODGrKINS, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

STEEL BUILDING CONSTRUCTION.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 761,297, dated' May 31, 1904.

l Application iiledIIuly 15, 1903. Serial No. 165,541. (No model.)

To all whim/t it may concern:

-Be it known that I, HOWARD G. I-IoDeKINs,

lowing is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had tothe accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification. f Y

This invention relates to improvements in floor frame constructions for steel -frame buildings and also to improvements in the gen` eral structure of the frames of such buildings;

and the invention consists in the matters hereinafter vset forth, and more particularlypointed Y out in the appended claims.

In the drawings, Figure lis a broken plan view of a part of one Hoor structure of a building and a portion of a subjacent floor. Fig. 2 is an enlarged section taken on line 2 2 of Fig. 1.

The construction shown in Fig. l is diagram'matical in its natu re,the details involving .the attachment of the several parts being omitted. l v

As shown in said drawings, A A designate the supporting posts or columns of the frame structure of the building, and B B the floorgirders extending between andattached to said columns and which support or vcarry the fioor proper, C, of the building.`

B B designatethe outside girders, which in a rectangular building, as is herein illustrated, are arranged at right angles with respect to each other and are joined at the corner "set that the columns of any group of four 45' occupy the corners of a rectangle, and it is usual to arrange said columns, to occupy the corners of an oblong rectangle. B extend between and are attached to the posts A and are arranged diagonally with respect to the sides of the building instead of parallel The girders,

be attached to the columns in the usual manner,l said columns, which are herein shown as made `of rectangular cross-section, are set diagonally with respect to the side walls of the building or with their side faces parallel with the oblique girders B. y The -floor proper, C, which is made of concrete, tile, or other firev therewith. In order to permit the girders to n Vproof structure, is bridged or arched across the space between adjacent girders B. As herein shown, said floor C has the form of a flat arch, andthe material composing'the Iioor is extended downwardly to cover the sides of vsaid girders, and said downwardly-extending partsY rest-on the lower A ianges of said beams, which are herein shown as made of I-beams.` The floor C maybe made of any peculiar form of arch desired. The columns A (shown in Fig. 2) are finished columns, which are ordinarily found in a large room of a buildingsuch, for instance, as a store-room or the l1ke ,which is not divided into apartments or smaller nomical plan, so far as the steel structure is concerned, when the columns are .spaced so close together as to enable a'ioor-arch of `practical width and depth .for a given load capacity to be bridged between two adjacent lines of girders. It often occurs, however, that the rows of posts are set so far apart that the span between two adjacent lines of girders is too great to practically bridge an arch floor between the same to withstand the required Hoor load with a Hoor ofpractical or economical depth or thickness. In cases where the rows of columns are so far apart as torender it impracticable to bridge the span between adjacent girders it has rheretofore been a common practice toprovide short intermediate beams extending the shorterdistance between the adjacent girders and sup- IOC ported thereon, said intermediate beams being spaced a distance apart to support a practical span of Hoor for a given or required load stress. This construction, while reducing the span between the adjacent Hoor-supporting members and enabling a practical floor-arch to safely carry the required load without decreasing the distance between column centers, has the objection of greatly increasing the tonnage of steel required to construct the floor-frame. In other words, the tonnage of steel is increased by that required to supply the transverse beams.

The diagonal arrangement of the girders herein shown is useful in constructions where the rows of columns of the building are set so far apart as to preclude spanning the distance between two adjacent rows of columns with a iioor of practical dimensions for a given load and the arrangement is such that while preserving' the distance between the column centers the span between adjacent girders is shortened to such extentas to render it practicable to bridge the space between adjacent girderswith a ioor of practical dimensions for the load required. This advantage is made clear by an inspection of Fig. l, from which it is evident that the distance between two adjacent obliquely-arranged girders is less than that between the centers of the columns in the shortest direction therebetween. For instance, if the distance between column centers be sixteen feet measured by the shortest distance the distance between the girders arranged obliquely to said rows is approximately twelve feet. The arrangement herein shown permits, therefore, the employment of asingle or primary row of girders between which the ioor is spanned, while avoiding the necessity of employing the intermediate beams above referred to and yet not exceedinga safe ioorspan for the load required. On the other hand, for a given spacing of the columns I am enabled, while maintaining a margin of safety of load stress of the ioor, to decrease the thickness of the floor span or arch, with a corresponding reduction in the cost thereof. Furthermore, I may employ a floor of given span and strength while increasing the distance between column centers and may thus be enabled to economize in the cost of the columns. It will therefore be seen that the system of arranging the girders of the ioor structure shown herein results i 11 the saving of steel tonnage when the supportingcolumns are set so far apart as to preclude the practicability or safety of spanning the distance between said columns, in econoniizing in the cost of the iioor proper notwithstanding the span between adjacent rows of columns, and in economizing in the cost of columns with a given span and strength of fioors.

As a further and separate improvement the girders of two adjacent floors are arranged at right angles to each other instead of being ar ranged parallel with each other. This construction is advantageous, as it gives perfect bracing against wind-pressures or the vibration of machinery in the building. ln constructing a building of a large number of stories the girders of each two adjacent floors or stories will be arranged in directions at right angles to each other, thereby providing such bracing from the lower to the top stories of the building.

I claim as my invention l. A steel building-frame comprising columns which are arranged in parallel rows, and floor-girders extending between and supported on said columns, said girders being arranged in parallel rows and all extending in the same direction, and obliquely to the rows of columns, whereby the span between adjacent rows of girders is less than the span between adjacent rows of columns.

2. A steel building-frame of a number of stories, comprising columns arranged in parallel rows,and floor-girders extending between and supported on said columns, the girders of each floor being arranged in parallel rows and all extending in the same direction, and obliquely to the rows of columns, whereby the span between adjacent rows of girders is less than the span between adjacent rows of columns, and the girders of one floor heilig arranged transversely with respcct to the girders of an adjacent Hoor.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I atlix my signature, in presence of two witnesses, this 1st day of July, A. D. 1903.

HOWARD e. Hons-inns.

Witnesses:

WILLIAM L. HALL, GERTRUDE BRYcn.

lOO 

